During a recent interview with Fox News Digital, former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya (pictured above), known for her coverage of the National Football League, said Minnesota is suffering a crisis of leadership and needs a political outsider "with a spine," so she is running for public office as a Republican.
"We have career politicians who have brought us to this place, and they're not coming to save us," she stated. "Some of us are going to have to step up and clean up the mess ourselves."
After retiring from broadcasting in 2022, Tafoya co-chaired the Republican gubernatorial campaign of Kendall Qualls in Minnesota and has been active as a political commentator and podcast host, focusing on conservative issues, public safety, and government accountability.
"I've lived here for over 30 years, raised my family here," she told Fox. "I know a Minnesota that is safe and peaceful and clean with excellent public schools, but that place is in severe decline."
She hopes to win the U.S. Senate seat currently held by retiring Tina Smith (D), who has taken strongly Democratic policy positions for abortion and environmental legislation and against GOP-led budget and spending cuts. She has also been publicly critical of GOP leaders and President Donald Trump.
In the shooting death of an anti-ICE protester earlier this month, she accused the Trump administration of attempting a "cover-up," and she says the agency is undermining public safety.
While U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is arresting dangerous predators and drug dealers who are in the U.S. illegally, Minnesota's Democratic leaders continue to encourage the state to resist federal authorities and what Governor Tim Walz has called a "campaign of organized brutality" against "neighbors of color."
Tafoya describes herself as a "pro-choice conservative," but the Republican Party hopes she gains Smith's seat as they aim to defend and expand their current 53-47 majority in the chamber in this year's midterm elections.
Jan Markell, founder and director of Minneapolis-based Olive Tree Ministries, thinks the sentiment is turning in her state, but she believes it is still "hopeless" for the Republicans because of the "cheating machine."
"The Democrat Party has it down to a science here, and you really can't overcome it," she laments. "So, I'm not overly optimistic."
While the media maintains that there is no credible evidence that Democrats in Minnesota have engaged in fraud on a scale that would affect election results, Gov. Walz has chosen not to seek reelection as he and other state leaders are investigated for overlooking or covering up large-scale welfare fraud that has cost taxpayers an estimated $9 billion.
Tafoya's Senate campaign emphasizes themes like combating corruption and fraud, supporting law enforcement, immigration enforcement, protecting women's sports, and reducing taxes and costs for families.
